Since 2020, global shareholder dividends have grown 14 times faster than wages

Between 2020 and 2023, dividends to already wealthy shareholders have increased by 45% in real terms while wage earners' incomes only increased by 3%. The richest 1% have, just by owning shares, received on average USD 9,000 in dividends in 2023. An average wage earner would have to work for 8 months to earn the same figure in salary. 

On the eve of May Day, Oxfam notes that global shareholder dividends grew 14 times faster than wages in 31 countries between 2020 and 2023, countries that together account for 81% of global GDP. In addition, data from the Global Living Wage Coalition (GLWC) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) show that far too many people around the world are forced to survive on wages below the World Bank's poverty line. 

"Corporate profits and dividends to wealthy shareholders have skyrocketed while wages have stagnated. Millions of people are in jobs that trap them in a cycle of hard labor while they still cannot afford enough food, medicine or other necessities. This is a dangerous and unsustainable trend, and world leaders must act to address this extreme inequality."

Suzanne Standfast, Secretary General of Oxfam Sweden.

These annual dividends will soon break last year's record of USD 1.66 trillion, according to the Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index. The index covers the world's 1200 largest companies and represents 90% of global dividends. Data for both dividends and wages for 2020-2023 is available for 31 countries.  

• Adjusted for inflationand global dividends have increased by 45 percent (USD 195 billion USD) in 31 countries between 2020 and 2023, while wageserwages only increased by 3%.

• If you exclude China, swhich accounted for then largest part of wageincreases, they fell the global realwageserwages by 3% over the same period.

This trend of increasing handouts has worrying effects on inequality. Oxfam's analysis of Global Living Wage Coalition (GLWC) data from countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America found that only 2 out of 37 countries have a minimum wage that is higher than the living wage - a wage that GLWC estimates allows the wage earner to meet basic needs, such as housing, food, healthcare, clothing and transportation. On average, minimum wages only reach 38% of the wage required to be a living wage.

• These findings confirm that more and more working people are living in poverty and need to skipping meals, falling into debt and are forced to forgo basic needs. Using data from the International Labor Organization (ILO) fann Oxfam that:

• Almost 1 in 5 salarytagare globally has a wage that is below below the World Bank's poverty line of 3.65 dollars per day.

• 66 percent of wage earners in low-income countries earn poverty wages - a level of pay that falls short of World Bank's poverty line of $3.65 per day.

"These gaps are completely unreasonable - and those with power and influence must act. No company should be paying big dividends to rich shareholders unless they pay a living wage to all their employees."

Suzanne Standfast, Secretary General of Oxfam Sweden.

In Sweden, inequality is also evident: the five richest Swedes own more than 5 million Swedes combined. Oxfam has shown in previous reports that Sweden's tax policy is failing to combat economic inequality. Figures from LO show that there are 67 industrial workers' salaries on an average salary for a company CEO. 

Sources:

• Read more Oxfam's report Inequality Inc.

• Download Oxfam's methodology

• Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index analyzes the 1200 largest companies globally based on market capitalization and represent then 90 percent of global equity dividends. The next 1800 represent only 10% and has due to because of its size no sizeörgreater impact on the result. Janus Henderson predicts that stock dividends commer hit new record of 1,72 trillion dollars in 2024.

• According to the ILO, income inequality has increased.